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Office of the Mayor
NEWS RELEASE
South Bend rises in `Best Places for Business' list
Contact: Mikki Dobski, Director of Communications&Special Projects, 235-5855 or 876-1564
The South Bend metropolitan area leapfrogged over Chicago, Evansville, Ind., and other
Midwestern cities to rise 26 places in Forbes magazine's annual list of the "Best Places
for Business and Careers."
South Bend placed 114a' overall after New York and before Peoria, Ill., in the ranking of
200 metropolitan areas released this month by Forbes magazine. In 2006, South Bend
ranked 140a' overall. South Bend was one of five Indiana cities listed on the major
metropolitan cities list, while seven Indiana cities made the "Best Places" list for smaller
metropolitan areas.
The rise in South Bend's rank came as the metropolitan area's statistics improved for
both the cost of doing business and for job growth while stayed statistically level in terms
of the share of the population with at least a bachelor's degree. (The cost of doing
business was indexed based on the cost of labor, energy, taxes and office space, while job
growth is based on five years of annualized figures.)
"Rankings are subject to more debate than College Football's national champion, but
they do manage to capture at least a piece of reality. And the reality is that South Bend is
on the move when it comes to creating a strong business environment and finding career
opportunities," said Mayor Stephen J. Luecke. "From affordable high-speed Internet
connections for businesses through the MetroNet and great infrastructure for distribution
to unrivaled educational opportunities and an affordable base for small-business
entrepreneurs, South Bend is poised for new economic development."
South Bend's upward mobility came at atime when the state's largest city, Indianapolis,
fell from 10a'to 27a' place. Following Indianapolis were Fort Wayne (94 ), South Bend
(114th), Evansville (116'') and Gary(144th).
Among the quadrant of metropolitan areas of similar population size (233,000 to
370,000), South Bend ranked 1 la' in terms of the lowest cost of doing business and 20
overall.
The Forbes report is available online at: http://www.forbes.com/2007/04/05/best-cities-
business-biz-07bestplaces-cz kb_0405bestplacesintro.html
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